MANPOWER NEEDED FOR THIS CLEAN-UP! M-U-D CREWS DISMANTLE BLONDO STREET.. PIECE BY PIECE. EXPERTS SAY IT'S BECAUSE OF SOIL EROSION..AND AN áAGING SYSTEM. SO RIGHT NOW, M-U-D IS WORKING TO SWAP OUT THE OLD, WITH NEW. BUT TO FIX A SYSTEM THAT áCENTURIES OLD..IT'S GOING TO TAKE A WHILE. K-E-T-V NEWSWATCH SEVEN'S KRISTYNA ENGDAHL..LIVE AT THIS MORNING'S BREAK. THAT'S RIGHT, AND TAKE A LOOK AT THE DAMAGE HERE, NEAR 75TH AND BLONDO. PART OF THE ENTIRE WEST-BOUND LANE ..IS áGONE..LEAVING BEHIND A GIANT HOLE. BUT M-U-D SAYS THE CULPRIT: CAST IRON PIPES..ALL SLOWLY, BUT áSURELY..BEING REPLACED. WITH WATER FLOWING DOWN BLONDO STREET..IT'S áSTOPPING THE FLOW OF áBUSINESS.(Dr. Michael Hoover/Dentist: We had a whole day scheduled of patients, we had to cancel the day.) BECAUSE DOCTOR MICHAEL HOOVER'S DENTAL PRACTICE..IS BONE DRY.(Dr. Michael Hoover: To do our work, suction, clean off people's teeth, we have to have water.) AND HE'S NOT ALONE..ABOUT 40 OF HIS NEIGHBORS LOST WATER -- INCLUDING THIS DAYCARE..CALLING IN AN áEMERGENCY WATER SUPPLY. (jackhammer) AND IT'S ALL BECAUSE OF THIS..A MASSIVE, WATER MAIN BREAK.(Gene Jaworski/Water Repair Foreman, MUD: 12-inch main has a lot of pressure. It carries a lot of water, and did quite a bit of damage.) DAMAGE LIKE THIS -- A HOLE áBIGGER THAN AN AVERAGE áCAR! AND IN OMAHA..THE áNUMBER OF BREAKS, IS áUP.(Jeff Schovanec/Director of Engineering Designing, MUD: The soil itself imparts forces and as vehicles drive over they impart forces and so there's actually forces on the pipe from the soil around it.) M-U-D DIRECTOR OF ENGINEERING DESIGNING JEFF SCHOVANEC SAYS THAT FORCE AND SUMMER áHEAT, ON AGING CAST- IRON PIPES..IS THE áROOT OF THE PROBLEM.(Jeff Schovanec: The cast iron in our system is most susceptible to breaks and stresses.) THAT'S WHY M- U-D ..IN THE PROCESS OF áREPLACING ALL THOSE PIPES -- WITH COST EFFICIENT YET áEFFECTIVE MATERIAL..LIKE P-V-C, FOR EXAMPLE.(Jeff Schovanec: So there's a lot of tools in the tool box, and we're trying to figure out which ones are going to work best.) UNTIL COMPLETION ..THERE WILL BE OCCASSIONAL BREAKS TO CONTEND WITH -- AND AS FOR DOCTOR HOOVER'S PATIENTS..THEY'LL JUST HAVE TO BE PATIENT.(Dr. Michael Hoover: They understand if we can't operate properly or safely for them, it's in their best interest.) THERE IS 12-HUNDRED MILES OF CAST IRON PIPE THAT NEEDS REPLACING -- AND THEY JUST STARTED IN JANUARY 2008. SO TO GO IN AND REPLACE INFRASTRUCTURE, áCENTURIES

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